Monday, April 14, 2014

If you want to feel energised and look glowing on your wedding day, you should start with a healthy breakfast full of natural ingredients. Australian company The Muesli specialises in delicious sugar-free breakfast cereals packed with raw nuts, seeds, oats and coconut.

The Muesli range consists of two products: 'The Muesli Classic' and 'The Muesli Gluten Free', and customers are encouraged in their fight for healthy eating without sugar. They are advised not to consume products that contain more than five grams of sugar per 100 grams. However, sugar-free meal isn’t taste-free! It can be very scrumptious when packed with premium quality ingredients.

Our Art Director, Danielle Scaife tried The Muesli and loved it! She thinks that it makes an ideal breakfast for brides and grooms on their wedding-day because it contains everything you need to kick start your big day. You can have The Muesli bircher-style with natural yoghurt or a splash of milk and berries or mix it in a blender to make a smoothie.

Available in different sizes and packages, The Muesli can be purchased at David Jones, Harris Farm Markets, selected IGA Supermarkets, all quality fresh food grocers and health retailers, as well as online.

Tanya Bartolini always knew she loved to cook, but it wasn’t until she took maternity leave from her high-stress career in accounting and finance and gave birth to her first son that she realised she wanted to do it for a living.

“I realised that I had all these recipes in my head and scrawled on loose scraps of paper throughout my kitchen cupboards. I wanted to share them with other like-minded people,” says Tanya.

“I’m not a chef, I’m just a person who loves food and loves to cook good, hearty meals for my family. Coming from an Italian background, food was a big part of my upbringing and for me, food is synonymous with family. It began to dawn on me that there must be millions of people like me, who don’t want to tackle fancy recipes with a million ingredients and even more steps to follow. I thought I was time-poor before but becoming a mum only exacerbated that. It helped me understand the challenges people face every day in putting appetising dishes on the table.”

It is for this reason that Tanya developed The Everyday Cook Network. Tanya’s aim for the network is to create a forum of food-lovers who can interact with each other, sharing recipes, food wins and failures, and tips and tricks for improving dishes. Tanya frequently films videos showing her preparing meals, to better instruct her followers on how to put together a dish step-by-step.

Followers are encouraged to email in their own recipes directly to Tanya or to post them on the accompanying Facebook page, to create interactive discussion.

While establishing The Everyday Cook Network, Tanya has written her family history, interweaving it with delicious Italian recipes to create her first cookbook, Blending the Cultures.

“My book is really about my entire family. After the second World War, Italy was a broken country and thankfully, my grandfather took the risk to come to Australia in search of a better life for his children and ultimately, my children. Throughout everything we’ve been through, food has been the thing that has kept us together and the book is a celebration of the way food can unite us and bring such joy,” says Tanya.

“I took my heritage for granted growing up – I thought everyone knew about gnocchi and cannoli and that everyone’s Nonna made rich tomato passata. Blending The Cultures is my attempt to share a part of the Australian story that isn’t widely documented and to both preserve and share these beautiful recipes,” says Tanya.

Blending the Cultures features recipes from simple spaghetti sauce and marinated eggplant to garlic soy BBQ squid and savoiardi cake. It outlines the basics of making homemade pasta and chicken stock, removing the fear of the unknown when it comes to cooking from scratch. The book is written in Tanya’s own voice, with mentions of her personal experience with the dishes and why they mean so much to her.

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Mary Antoinette meets Alice In Wonderland with this exquisite designer tea ware range, Age of Elegance by Cristina Re, in a magical Pretty Polka and Pretty Stripe story.

Made from the finest quality porcelain with an elegant 24ct gold trim, you will experience High Tea in style with this beautiful collection available in bold Ebony and Pretty Blush colour palettes.

Cristina Re is excited to announce that Sophie Van Den Akker is the new face of Cristina Re Age of Elegance High Tea in Style Collection. Sophie was a finalist in Australia's Next Top Model and the muse of Melbourne Spring Fashion Week 2012.

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

When the days are too cold to bear and the nights are even worse, there’s only one way to get warmed up - with Lush! Lush’s selection of all-year-round products are here for you to rub on or soak in, and will warm every part of your body.

Use these favourite winter warmers to heat you up and make you feel alive again!

Hottie massage bar $10.50

This solid massage bar is for seriously stiff muscles! Hottie is specifically moulded with bumps that enhance any massage with extra pressure to get the circulation going and warm you right up. The jojoba and butter base melts onto the skin quickly to allow a smooth and sensual experience. Lush use vanilla absolute for its cosy aroma; it's also moisturizing for the skin and softening in combination with shea and cocoa butters, which makes it a saviour for dry winter skin. Black pepper and ginger oils are stimulating and help to release muscle tensions and aches. A Hottie like this one is sure to get you going. Vegan.

The Comforter bubble bar $10.50 each

This concoction of bergamot and cypress essential oils have a calming and soothing action, making it the perfect way to end a long, cold day. Both of these oils are known for their comforting properties, so why not close yourself away from the world, layback and let your tension float away on the cosy, blackcurrant scented bubbles. Vegan.

Honey Bee bath ballistic $6.75 each

Even busy bees need a break from the cold every now and then. The Honey Bee smells like butterscotch popcorn, freshly popped and still warm from the oven – the perfect way to heat up your body and your mind. The Moroccan Rhassoul mud cleanses and helps to purify your skin while you soak, and the most obvious ingredient, honey, is a natural humectant, which means that it retains and preserves moisture on your skin. Fizz it and soak in the caramel-scented waters. Vegan.

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Welcome to the The Bride's Diary Home & Lifestyle blog... Bringing together everything you need for a happy home and luxurious lifestyle. We look forward to bringing you much inspiration for your future life together - enjoy!